‘Long Overdue’: Issa hails Marcus Garvey pardon by US president

Christopher Issa, CEO of the S-Hotel chain, has praised the decision by the United States President on Sunday to pardon Jamaica’s National Hero, the Right Excellent Marcus Mosiah Garvey, calling it a long-overdue gesture.

Issa, whose hotels in Montego Bay and Kingston have been dedicated to showcasing Jamaica's cultural heritage and icons, commissioned two statues of the national hero, which were erected at S-Hotel Montego Bay in 2019, and inside S-Foods Supermarket in Kingston in 2022.

He said the pardon would only amplify the teachings and works of the leader who continues to make Jamaica and its people proud even in death. Many Jamaicans, particularly, the young are unaware of their rich history and culture, and this monumental move will only bring them closer to their roots, Issa posited.

"I've always felt it was more his message at the time and the unfortunate financial circumstances that led to his problems, but his heart, his cause, his words, were always right."

He added: "I grew up hearing about Marcus Garvey. He used to visit my great-grandfather Elias Issa regularly at his office downtown, and he would help him financially with his work. Personally, this is what influenced my decision regarding the statues as well."

"Many Jamaican icons, including Bob Marley, were heavily influenced by Garvey's teachings, and I think that a people without knowledge of their history is like a tree without roots," said Issa, outlining added reasons for commissioning the statues.

Issa

According to the Jamaican hotelier, whose properties are known worldwide for immersing guests to the island into Jamaica's wonderful culture, he is proud; welcoming of this exoneration, and elated that the S Hotel group thought of honouring the true legend long before President Joe Biden made the move.

"I feel that these statues, bring Jamaicans and foreigners who visit the locations closer together, giving them a sense of pride, while fostering our resilience as a people. This is what Marcus Garvey fought so long and hard for. The statues will definitely bring that knowledge home to the children in particular."

US President Joe Biden pardoned five people on Sunday, including Marcus Garvey - in response to a decades- long call from many Jamaican cultural leaders.

Garvey was arrested and imprisoned in 1923 when he was convicted of mail fraud and sentenced to five years in prison. Following appeals, US President Calvin Coolidge commuted the sentence and had him deported to Jamaica.

Marcus Garvey’s pardon for many corrects a grave historical miscarriage of justice that resulted from an illegal, intelligence-led operation designed to disable the influential 19th century Pan Africanist movement the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), that had captured the imagination of hundreds of thousands of people of African descent.